Morgan Palmer - Saturday afternoon
The weekend weather system is going according to forecast, with pockets of snow, rain, and even small hail rolling through Western Washington, spaced out by some sunbreaks! An isolated thunderstorm can’t be ruled out too, especially west of Puget Sound later today.
Overall, this is not a significant widespread lowland snow event, but localized showers that are heavy enough with wet snow or ice pellets can cause some traffic issues.
These passing showers of mixed precipitation or wet snow through the afternoon, but with warm southwesterly winds just aloft, this is going to keep the lowlands sufficiently warm that temperatures will reach the upper 30s and lower 40s this afternoon. While any heavier precipitation could “drag down” the snow levels to nearer sea level in isolated showers, any brief accumulations should melt pretty quickly except sticking around a little longer on grassy and elevated surfaces.
Above 500 feet or so in elevation, temperatures will be a little bit cooler and this cooling is more pronounced in locations above about 1,000 feet in elevation. This will allow for showers of rain/snow mix or snow to cause spotty accumulations of snow and slush.
The most favored areas for any accumulation that could cause travel issues will be in foothill locations, Whatcom County, Snohomish and Skagit Counties, along the Strait and the coast (mainly away from the beaches), and any spots above 500 feet in elevation. A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for most of these areas.
In addition, there is the chance for an isolated lightning strike and hail shower too on Saturday. This could cause brief travel difficulty where ice pellets showers occur. Plus, some sunbreaks at times!
In the mountains, snow showers will continue through the day with more accumulations at times!
There are some signs in forecast data of a tapering of the coverage of precipitation later this Saturday evening into tonight. Not totally rain/snow free, but fewer spots will see precipitation this Saturday evening, before an uptick in the moisture again on Sunday.
Temperatures drop to around freezing by Sunday morning before rebounding into the 30s, so watch out for some slick and slushy spots. Some snow and rain/snow mix showers look to pick back up a bit throughout the day tomorrow. Still, the showery, spotty nature of these passing areas of snow/mixed precipitation make it difficult to isolate specific snowfall amounts for any area, but as with Saturday the better chances will be north of Seattle, in the foothills and adjacent higher elevations (above 300 feet), the coast away from the beaches and also some spots south of Puget Sound.
Locations in the central and south Sound immediately on the water like Seattle and Tacoma have the lowest chance of accumulation throughout this period but folks will see snow!
Through early Sunday evening, we’ll have some melting where wet snow falls in the lowlands and also some moisture from rain. But then temperatures fall. We will have some icy patches by Monday morning as temperatures drop a bit below freezing, so drivers beware. We’ll also have a better chance for any lowland snow to actually stick around for a while, creating minor accumulations.
I anticipate there’s a good chance of some school delays and possibly closures Monday, though that will be far more the exception than the rule. We will have you covered on the morning commute and school delays on KIRO 7 News in the Morning Monday from 4:30 a.m.
For Monday, the most likely areas to have impact from snow and icy roads will again be in the previously-mentioned areas of the foothills of the Cascades, Eastside communities (especially above a few hundred feet elevation), parts of the North Sound (especially from South Everett east through Lake Stevens and south to Snohomish and Mill Creek), Western Whatcom County and the San Juans and western Skagit County and the coast and Strait.
It continues to be important to note that while most of the area will not have significant snowy or icy travel through this period, most locations will have precipitation of some sort — be it rain, a rain/snow mix, or lightly-or-non accumulating snow. Be careful out driving because even if temperatures are above freezing, heavier precipitation that includes wet snow could cause slippery and slushy travel.
Through Monday afternoon, a very slow drying trend is noted but the precipitation type on Monday is more likely to be all snow. However, further accumulations after Monday morning should be mainly light and isolated. Highs will only be in the 30s. A few flurries are likely Tuesday with lows in the 20s and highs in the 30s.
While we maintain a mainly dry forecast, the remainder of the week beyond next Tuesday, there could be further chances for light snow we will evaluate as new data come in. This forecast for later next week is very uncertain.
It is likely to be quite cold from Tuesday through Friday with morning lows in the teens to mid-20s and highs in the low-to-mid 30s. This cold will be dangerous for the unhoused.
Also, be thinking and acting now about how you will keep your exposed exterior faucets and pipes protected, and make sure pets and animals have a warm place to be. Also, make sure (if able) to check on neighbors who might have trouble with heat.
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